Forest Clans Prophecies: The New Cat
by Rubyfur
Summary: A new cat has come to ForestClan, seeking to destroy them - and the three other Clans - by the order of the leader of a few rogues. One cat from the Clan has been having strange dreams - StarClan has chosen him to be the one to put an end to all darkness.
1. Allegiances and Prologue

The sky was dark. There was no moon tonight, and the stars were covered by clouds. Two dark shapes slipped through the trees, moving swiftly yet silently.

All of a sudden, one of them stopped. He motioned for his companion to stay still and listen. Voices drifted over to them, loud in the silence of the night. Yet the two were unable to make out the words.

A light breeze blew towards the two, and instinctively, both cats' claws slid out and their fur bristled. The scent that was carried on the breeze was not of their own Clan, and that meant one thing.

There were intruders in their territory.

As the cat who had first heard the voices moved forward, the other flicked out her tail to bar his way.

"Wait, Whitewater," she hissed. "We don't know how many there are."

The long-haired white tom lashed his tail impatiently. "I know, Darkwhisker. I'm just going to look."

"I'll go instead. Your white fur will be easily spotted. My dark fur would blend in," Darkwhisker meowed quietly, then crouched down and crept towards the sound.

Whitewater followed the dark tabby, ignoring her words. His ears swiveled back and forth, listening for any sounds of ambush.

Darkwhisker stopped all of a sudden, causing Whitewater to crash into her painfully. His mouth opened in a protest, but only a muffled squeak came out as Darkwhisker slapped her tail over his mouth. She shifted a little to the side so that Whitewater could see.

The trail they were following led into a small clearing. They were hidden among the roots of a tree that grew close to the edge of the clearing. A few cats were gathered in the clearing itself; Whitewater could see that there were five of them.

"Rogues or loners," Darkwhisker whispered to Whitewater. He nodded. They carried a scent that did not belong to any of the four Clans of the forest.

Both cats could hear the mews now.

"Ginger, Ghost, this is Fang and Claw," one of the cats, a dark red tom, meowed, flicking his tail to two massive cats that stood beside him; one was completely black, the other was white.

"The dark red tom looks like Thornmask!" Whitewater hissed to Darkwhisker, referring to the deputy of ForestClan.

Darkwhisker nodded silently, still watching. The wind that had at first carried the scent of the unfamiliar cats to them had died down, but the clouds still floated in across the sky. By the light of the stars, the five cats could be seen clearly.

"Are you sure we can trust them, Berrynose?" one of the cats spoke, a silver tom. He and another cat, a light ginger tom, were facing their backs to Whitewater and Darkwhisker.

"They will kill at my command. Does that satisfy you, Ghost?" Berrynose meowed menacingly.

Ghost hesitated, but nodded. His fur was very pale; he almost looked like a spirit of StarClan to the two Clan cats.

"Now, Ginger," Berrynose voice was friendly, but at the same time, it sounded completely mocking to the two Clan cats that still remained hidden among the tree roots. "The time has come."

Ginger flinched. The fur on his pelt began to rise, and he hissed, "I've already said, I'm not going to sneak into ForestClan, pretend to be one of their own, and then betray them. _This_ betrays any morals that cats have."

"Are you sure, Ginger?" every single word hid the threat of death, dripping with venom. Darkwhisker shuddered, her fur bristling. She had never heard any cat speak that way before. "This is your last chance, Ginger. Join ForestClan, pretending to be one of them, and then kill the leader for me to take over the Clan – or die."

Ginger stood his ground staunchly. The wind started up again, blowing towards him, as if Berrynose was controlling the wind to terrorize Ginger into obeying. But Ginger continued to glare at Berrynose. "I stand by my belief."

"Then you are a fool."

Darkwhisker and Whitewater did not catch a signal, but the two cats beside Berrynose leaped in a perfect, synchronized movement, claws unsheathed. The starlight glinted unnaturally on one of the cats' claws, and both Clan cats flinched when they realized that the cat's claws were extremely long and sharp. "Claw," Darkwhisker muttered. "The white tom's name is Claw."

Fang, the black tom, changed his direction mid-leap as Ginger whirled around to face Claw first. He landed on Ginger's back, pinning him down. As Claw raised his forepaw to deal the final slash across Ginger's neck, a sharp command was heard, "Wait!"

All three cats turned to look at Berrynose. There was hope in Ginger's blue eyes, that he would not be killed but exiled, alive and free.

Then the hope turned to despair as the obvious leader of these cats turned to face Ghost.

"Ghost, here's your chance to prove yourself not as foolish as your brother," he purred, amusement in his voice.

Whitewater trembled with rage, barely controlling himself from leaping out to Ginger's defence. How could any cat look upon killing as a form of amusement?

Darkwhisker, sensing Whitewater's fury, laid her tail on his shoulder to calm him down. Both cats watched in silent rage as Ghost stepped forward smoothly, almost as if he was gliding above the ground.

Ghost unsheathed his claws and lunged forward, slashing at his own brother's throat. Ginger's cry broke as blood began to spill out of the terrible wound, and he collapsed onto the ground, coughing. Claw and Fang released him, but Ginger did not attempt to run. His eyes stared lifelessly up at the sky, as if asking StarClan why they allowed such injustice to happen.

Ghost raised a paw and licked the blood from his claws, tail flicking as if he had done nothing but brought down a mouse for fresh-kill. Berryfire nodded to Claw and Fang and they slunk back to his side.

"You have done well, Ghost. Now that Ginger is gone, I will need a new replacement to carry out what we have planned for those fools in ForestClan," Berryfire padded forward to stand in front of Ghost.

The light gray tom dipped his head in respect, then meowed, "I will go in my faithless brother's place, Berryfire. You saved us from the Twolegs, and I will not forget the debt I owe to you, even though my brother seems to have."

Berryfire twitched his tail in amusement. "Do not worry, he has already paid the price for it. When we add this forest to our territories, you will be in charge of here," he narrowed his eyes, "Get into ForestClan, make them trust you. Then lure their leader out to die. We will discuss the other three Clans when you have accomplished this task." He waved his tail dismissingly, turned and strode in the direction away from the two Clan cats still watching from among the roots of the tree.

"I will not fail you, Berryfire," Ghost murmured, even though he knew Berryfire couldn't hear him anymore.

All of a sudden, his head whipped around and he stared hard at where Whitewater and Darkwhisker were hiding. "Who's there?" he meowed sharply.

Berryfire stopped and turned around. "Something wrong, Ghost?"

"I saw something moving," Ghost replied without taking his eyes off the tree roots.

Berryfire signaled to Claw and Fang to search where Ghost was looking at. They nodded to him and prowled forward.

Darkwhisker tried to stifle the panic. "We've been seen!" she hissed into Whitewater's ear. "We've got to run now and warn ForestClan!" she sprang to her paws and raced into the dark of the forest.

Whitewater scrabbled backwards, turned, and fled after Darkwhisker.

"There!" Ghost yowled, spotting them.

Whitewater stumbled over a tree root and fell painfully, twisting his paw. He heaved himself to his paws with a pained gasp, but one of the cats were already on him. He saw a flash of white, then something sharp digging into his neck. Then he saw and heard no more.

Darkwhisker veered sharply to her left and clawed her way up another tree. Her limbs were shaking as she finally hauled herself onto a tree branch high enough to see the path she and Whitewater had followed to the clearing. Then she gasped. The white tom – Claw – was standing over another white cat, sheathing his claws that were blood-stained. Whitewater lay sprawled out on the ground, blood still seeping from his neck into the ground. Darkwhisker felt sick, and closed her eyes to the horrible scene.

A rustling behind her, made her whip around, almost causing her to lose her balance. Fang leaped at her from above, taking advantage of Darkwhisker's stumble to slam her into the tree trunk. He pinned her against the trunk, then lowered his jaws to her neck. The she-cat felt pain, then everything went darker than the darkest night.

* * *

Allegiances

FORESTCLAN

Leader   
**Rubystar** – dark ginger she-cat with amber eyes**  
Apprentice, Ghostpaw**

Deputy  
**Thornmask** – dark red tom, tinged colour muzzle  
**Apprentice, Sapphirepaw**

Medicine cat  
**Icemask** – tortoiseshell she-cat

Warriors  
**Skywhisker** – light brown tom

**Iceclaw** – white she-cat with blue eyes  
**Apprentice, Brookpaw**

**Breezefoot** – swift gray tom  
**Apprentice, Shadowpaw**

**Hollyheart** – brown she-cat with green eyes

Apprentices  
**Ghostpaw** – sleek silver tom with green eyes

**Brookpaw** – silver she-cat with blue eyes

**Sapphirepaw** – blue-gray tom with blue eyes

**Shadowpaw** – dark gray she-cat, almost black, blue eyes

Queens  
**Swiftpelt** – black she-cat with white paws

Elders  
**Brownclaw** – long-haired brown tabby tom

FIRECLAN

Leader   
**Mossstar** – orange tabby she-cat with green eyes  
**Apprentice, Rainpaw**

Deputy  
**Oceansky** – gray-blue tom with blue eyes  
**Apprentice, Lionpaw**

Medicine cat  
**Iceeyes** – gray (with darker flecks) she-cat  
**Apprentice, Opalpaw**

Warriors  
**Hawktail** – brown tom with darker spots

**Battlesong** – golden she-cat

**Fallenleaf** – pale ginger she-cat with blue eyes

**Morningdew** – small gray tabby she-cat

Apprentices  
**Opalpaw** – cream coloured she-cat with amber eyes

**Lionpaw** – light orange tom with green eyes

**Rainpaw** – blue-gray tabby she-cat

Queens  
None.

Elders  
None.

WINDCLAN

Leader  
**Talonstar** – light brown tabby tom with a long tail  
**Apprentice, Rockpaw**

Deputy  
**Icefur** – pure white she-cat

Medicine cat  
**Iceweed** – gray and white she-cat with amber eyes

Warriors  
**Nightheart** – black she-cat with green eyes

**Huskyfeather **– silver-gray tom

**Silverwind** – silver tom with lighter stripes

**Fennelheart** – gray she-cat with amber eyes  
**Apprentice, Spiritpaw**

**Brightfoot – **dark ginger she-cat with white paws

Apprentices  
**Rockpaw** – silver-gray tom with blue eyes

**Spiritpaw – **jet-black tom with amber eyes

Queens  
None.

Elders  
**Airlion** – light brown she-cat with blue eyes

RIVERCLAN

Leader  
**Snowstar** – long-haired white she-cat

Deputy  
**Deathshadow** – black tom with blue eyes  
**Apprentice, Silverpaw**

Medicine cat  
**Icespot** – white she-cat with silver paws

Warriors  
**Fernheart** – light brown tabby she-cat

**Iceheart** – silver-blue she-cat  
**Apprentice, Swiftpaw**

**Wolffang** – dark gray tom with blue eyes

**Coalpelt** – dusty-looking brown tom

**Rippletail** – long-haired brown tabby she-cat

Apprentices  
**Silverpaw** – long-haired silver tabby she-cat

**Swiftpaw** – light gray she-cat with green eyes

Queens  
**Lakeflower** – silver-blue tabby she-cat

Elders  
None.

Cats Outside Clans

**Bear – **black tom, lives on the edge of ForestClan and FireClan's territory.

**Berryfire** – dark red tom, rogue.

**Ginger** – pale ginger tom, rogue.


	2. Chapter 1

Thornmask found himself wandering through a dark void. He knew he was dreaming because he recalled falling asleep in the warriors' den. He padded forward aimlessly, uncertain of his direction and destination. Out of the corner of his eye, the darkness shifted. He stopped, staring into the darkness with narrowed eyes.

At first, nothing seemed to change. Thornmask thought that he had been imagining too much, and was preparing to continue walking, when the darkness in the same direction shifted again. He paused again. Something was moving towards him, the darkness giving way to it.

From afar, that something seemed to be shining brightly. In the silence of the void, Thornmask heard the gently swishing of a tail in the still air, soft pawsteps moving quickly and steadily growing louder. A scent he knew from long ago wreathed around him. As the something got closer, he made out a cat he knew, with the familiar light brown tabby pelt, stars shining in its pelt and gathered at its paws. The cat left a starry trail behind as it walked, which sparkled brightly.

"Rushtail?" he called out hesitantly.

"Greetings, Thornmask," the former medicine cat of ForestClan touched her nose Thornmask's lightly. The touch felt like the hottest fire and the coldest ice. "I have a warning for you. Listen carefully."

"Wait," Thornmask interrupted. "Why –"

"_A new cat, one that will bring doom to all, a traitor in place of another not real, only one can save the forest,_" Rushtail continued, ignoring Thornmask.

Thornmask blinked, feeling a chill run down his spine. "What does it mean?"

"Now is not the time to ask questions, young deputy. Time is crucial. He has been on the move since a long time ago. Should Forest Clan fall, the rest will too, " the StarClan warrior dipped her head, then began to fade away.

"Wait, Rushtail, I don't understand. Don't go yet!" Thornmask pleaded desperately.

Rushtail did not fade away into the darkness. She turned into a misty gray, almost like a ghost, lingering before him for a while. "My warning has been delivered. I must go. Remember, Thornmask. The existence of the Clans may very well rest on you."

Then she disappeared completely.

* * *

"Thornmask!"

The dark red tom jerked awake and sat up quickly, narrowly missing hitting his head against Skywhisker's. The light brown warrior was seated beside his nest, one paw that had been used to prode him extended.

"About time you woke up," he growled. "It's almost sunhigh and you haven't sent out any hunting parties. The fresh-kill pile's almost depleted."

With a jolt, Thornmask looked towards the entrance of the warriors' den. It was bright outside. He scrambled to his paws and almost dashed out of the den, Skywhisker following.

Almost all the warriors and apprentices were gathered in the clearing, milling about with nothing to do.

"Iceclaw, will you lead a hunting patrol? Take Breezefoot and Brookpaw with you." Thornmask meowed.

The white she-cat nodded and headed to the thorn tunnel, flicking her tail for Breezefoot and Brookpaw to follow.

"Anything to report?" he asked Skywhisker, who had led the dawn patrol.

Skywhisker shook his head. "We've not found any more strange scents since we discovered Whitewater and Darkwhisker's bodies. We also found two fox-traps and sprang them."

Thornmask flicked his tail to acknowledge his report. Skywhisker dipped his head and padded off to eat. The young deputy winced, the pitifully small fresh-kill pile a sore reminder of his failure as ForestClan's deputy, despite it having already been a moon since he was appointed.

When Thornmask was named to be the new deputy after Thrushtail, the previous deputy, died in a fox-trap, the whole Clan had been shocked. Everyone had wondered why he had been picked instead of an older and more experienced warrior, like Iceclaw or Skywhisker. To make things worse, he hadn't mentored an apprentice yet. Rubystar had promised him, in front of the whole Clan, that he would mentor Sapphirekit when the time came. That had reassured the Clan a little, but there were still some cats that believed he wasn't cut out to be deputy.

Days after, two ForestClan warriors, Whitewater and Darkwhisker, were attacked and killed while on dusk patrol by rogues. Thornmask knew the Clan blamed him for their deaths, seeing his reign as deputy as a dark time for ForestClan.

Sighing, he headed towards the Mossrock at the end of the clearing. Rubystar's den was a hollow in the back of the rock. Ferns grew on either side of the entrance, their fronds hiding the entrance into her den.

"Rubystar?" he called out, stopping outside the den.

"Thornmask? Come in," she replied.

Thornmask pushed his way through the ferns into the den. As his eyes adjusted to the dim light, he made out the ForestClan leader's outline in her nest at the end of the den.

His paws crunched softly on the sandy floor as he made his way towards her.

"Has the dawn patrol returned?" Rubystar asked, sitting up.

"Yes. They sprang two fox-traps. Skywhisker reported that there weren't any other unusual smells."

"I wonder if that's a good or bad thing," Rubystar frowned.

"Isn't that a good thing?" Thornmask asked.

"The rogues may return to attack after we've let our guard down." Rubystar sighed. "Too many of our warriors have joined StarClan, I do not wish to see anymore leaving us."

Thornmask nodded, understand his leader's concerns. "I've just sent Iceclaw, Breezefoot and Brookpaw on hunting patrol."

"Good. I will lead the sunhigh patrol." The dark ginger she-cat got to her paws and stretched. "The apprentice ceremony for Swiftpelt's kits will take place at sunset. I hope you are ready to become a mentor, Thornmask." There was a gleam in his old mentor's eyes.

He dipped his head. "Of course, Rubystar." His voice was calm, but inside, Thornmask was bursting with excitement. His first apprentice! He would show the Clan that Rubystar had made the right decision in appointing him as deputy, by training Sapphirekit to become a great warrior.

He followed as Rubystar padded out into the clearing. They joined Skywhisker at the shaded area beside the fresh-kill pile. Thornmask waited for Rubystar to pick one of the few remaining pieces, then took the mouse for himself. He settled down beside them to eat, listening to their conversation.

As he tucked into the mouse, Thornmask's thoughts drifted back to when he first joined the Clan, with his close friend Bluestorm.

He had been born a loner named Thorn. When he was only moons old, his whole family was killed by dogs. He wandered alone aimlessly then, till he met a former kittypet, Blue. Her Twolegs had abandoned her when they moved. Ever since, they travelled together, and came across ForestClan. Intrigued by Clan life, they accepted the offer to become a part of ForestClan.

Rubystar had only just became the new leader of ForestClan then. Though Thorn and Blue were the same age as her, they entered the Clan as apprentices, Thornpaw and Bluepaw, to learn about Clan customs. Rubystar had taken Thornpaw as her apprentice, and Thornmask had to admit that even though they were of the same age, she was much more mature and wiser than he was.

Not long after they became warriors, Bluestorm disappeared. There wasn't any trace of her to be found, and though depressed over the lost of his friend, Thornmask soon got over it, with help from his old mentor and the rest of his Clanmates.

Rustling from the camp entrance brought Thornmask's thoughts back to the present. He scented Breezefoot a moment before he appeared from the thorn tunnel, carrying three mice and a vole. He padded over to the fresh-kill pile.

Thornmask swallowed his last bite of mouse and swiped his tongue around his mouth.

"Where are Iceclaw and Brookpaw?" he asked.

"Still out hunting. Iceclaw told me to bring this back first. I'm going out again," Breezefoot dipped his head and turned to leave.

"Hold on, I'll go with you." Thornmask leaped to his paws, glancing at Rubystar. She nodded to him, then returned to her conversation with Skywhisker.

He quickly buried the remains of his meal, then headed out of camp with Breezefoot.


End file.
